Dark Corners
by Wazakai
Summary: There's murder afoot, and the 'City of Hope' is safe for no mammal. (Warning, this story contains some very dark undertones, mild language, and a lot of violence, so read at your own discretion. Disclaimer: I do not own nor am I affiliated with Zootopia or its assets.)
1. Chapter 1

(Disclaimer: I do not own Zootopia, or any of its assets)

Dark Corners Chapter One: The Third Victim

The silhouette of a mammal underneath the overhang in-between the dark and decrepit buildings flicked the soggy stump of a cigarette to the ground; the puddle from the heavy rains extinguishing the slight glow surrounding the pitiful thing. The young mammal crushed it under the sole of his shoe as he slunk out of the alley silently, barely visible in the midnight fog and torrential rain. His face betrayed no emotion until his mouth twisted into an ungodly smirk. He crept up to the young cheetah he had spotted and he said hello.

"Oh, You scared me, I almost-" The young fox shushed her.

"Could I trouble you the time?" He asked, grinning with a smile that gave her chills.

She complied reluctantly.

"Twelve past midnight." The fox looked at the girl with an expression she couldn't place.

"Why would such a sweet thing be out and about at this hour?" The fox pried with a toothy grin stretched across his dirty face.

"Listen buddy. I have a boyfriend, so why don't you just mind your business before I call the cops?" The girl spat, scowling at the pathetic shell of a man before her.

"You listen to me!" The fox's playful attitude had dropped at the blink of an eye. "I'm just trying to make some polite conversation." The girl's eyes scanned the sidewalk, looking for help.

"W-what do you want? Money?" The girl stammered and backed up against the damp, brick wall.

"Oh no…" The fox trailed off. His eye began to twitch and he looked the girl dead in the eyes.

"I want something that no one can take away from us…" The fox began to chuckle and wheeze. The girl had no sooner cried out, than had the kerchief in the fox's pocket pressed to the cheetah's mouth. She only struggled for a moment before she fell to the ground, so close to death that even the coroner wouldn't be able to tell the difference. He began his operation, cackling under his breath, carrying a glint in his eyes.

"Hmm, what to do with this incapacitated young girl?" Asking himself playfully. He thought for a minute. The Fox felt no desire to take advantage of this girl. Instead, he felt a deep, hungry, lust however, to see her entrails spill onto the pavement. He took out his weapon of choice, a knife, with dried blood caked on like the makeup most women wore here in this grand hunting ground. He raised it ceremoniously high above his head, and brought it down with a sickening crunch. The night became a blur of pavement and blood. The growing pool spilled from the cracks of the filthy and desolate sidewalk to the empty road. His chuckle had morphed into an unholy and chilling laugh. He slumped over the shredded body of the girl.

"She's really… opened up to me…" The fox was quiet for a second, before howling into a fit of crazed laughter. He began to take chunks out of the girl, shoving them into his gaping maw. He was choking from the laughter, blood and bits of flesh stuck to his face and clothes. Once he'd picked his favorite parts clean, he stumbled away into the darkness; in the same way he arrived, giddy with the adrenaline that came with the taste and smell of a fresh kill. He slammed into trash cans and knocked over anything he walked past, falling into the crevices of the underbelly of the city. The echoes of his laughter bounced off the walls of the buildings that bore witness to his heartless killing.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A New Day

The sun rose on Zootopia the next morning, with a beam of light making its way through the window of an apartment building. The ray fell upon the face of Judy Hopps, and it woke her soon after. She sat up in bed, and waited a moment before getting up and opening the window. She took in the air for a minute, taking in the sight of the sun rising gently above and between the buildings of the city she helped save. Her phone buzzed, pulling her away from the windowsill. She picked up the phone and looked at the time before opening the text. It was from her partner, Nicholas Wilde, her friend and partner in cracking the missing mammal case. She smiled and set her phone down. A few minutes later, she was dressed and out in front of the apartment complex. She hailed a cab and climbed inside. She took this opportunity to respond to her best friend.

"See you at work!"

No sooner had she walked through the doors of the Zootopia Police Department was she called by Chief Bogo into his office. She thought about all of the mistakes she'd ever made ever since she was a kit in Bunnyburrow. She quickly rationalized and shook the thoughts from her mind. To her surprise, Nick was already sitting down, looking inside the manila folder that he held in front of him, and he looked shocked. She noticed his unusual attitude and inched into the other half of the same big office chair that Nick was sitting in, and her eyes opened wide as they fell on the images enclosed in the case file.  
It was a horribly mangled animal, if she had to guess, she'd say it was a cheetah, or at least, what was left of it. She thought she could see a pattern in the fur that confirmed her suspicions, and she almost couldn't look away. She wanted to throw her arms around Nick, she wanted to un-see what she had seen. Chief Bogo stared out the window in his office, his stoic expression gazing out into the city.

"Chief, what is this?" Nick shakily began. Without speaking, The Chief turned around and removed the top photo from the file, revealing the autopsy, and then clipped to the form was a small picture, showing the victim's profile and criminal records.

"The victim's dental records say that it's a female cheetah, named Julia Angleton. 26, 5"7' and _. She turned up this morning, our boys in the lab estimate she's been dead for 6-7 hours." Judy had been resisting the urge to begin crying silently into Nick's uniform, and Nick himself was holding down the feelings of nausea.

"This is just the latest in what we think is string of serial murders." The Chief said after a contemplative pause. "We've called in some specialists from the other precincts to help us apprehend the murderer. You two have proven yourself capable officers, your detective work needs no introduction, and I want you to represent us, along with officers Delgado and Fangmeyer. If you don't want to take this, I understand, but we need to catch whomever is committing such foul acts." Nick's head hung low, and Judy grabbed his hand. She knew Nick well enough to realize when he didn't return the squeeze. She narrowed her eyes and picked up the file.

"Carrots?" Nick's voice cracked slightly as hand trembled. "We don't have to take it if you don't want to have to deal with this sort of-."

"When can we begin the investigation, sir?" Judy mustered up as much confidence as she could. The Chief seemed a bit surprised, but then composed himself.

"You can begin tomorrow, when you form up with the rest of the forces. I have to go for a meeting in precinct 5, so I have to leave for the rest of the day." The buffalo's usually stern face had a certain sensitive, reassuring look that Judy wasn't used to. "Clawhauser's in the bullpen, and after he debriefs you, you'll go examine the remains of the victim. I'll tell the coroner you're on your way." Judy and Nick looked at each other, and Nick tried to force a smile just to make Judy feel better. The chief of police got up from his chair, and slung his coat over his shoulder. He stopped in the doorway, letting out a sigh of exasperation. "I have faith in you two, so take care of each other." He looked over his shoulder one last time before heading out.

"So the last victim was found here, and the two before her were found here. All of these appear to be have committed during the nocturnal hours, so we know that much, but we don't want to make any assumptions" Clawhauser was pointing to various circles dotted around Sahara Central with one hand, and with the other, he was cleaning out the rest of the donuts in his box.

"A guy running around, killing ladies in the night?" Nick asked, trying to lighten up the situation the only way he knew how. Judy noticed, and Nick thought he saw a hint of a grin at the corner of her mouth. He made himself a mental note, as not to not make any more needless comments.

"As I was saying, this murderer has no attack pattern. Now we do know, however, which district he commits his crimes in; unfortunately it's the biggest district in the city. We think that this killer may be linked to other murders there in the residential areas of Sahara Central. Officer Delgado's down there on patrol with officer Fangmeyer. You're going to examine the victim at the coroner's office, then meet up with them. There's a squad car out front." He handed them the keys to the car.

"Thanks Clawhauser…" Judy said, her mood clearly affected as she left the room, Nick behind her.

"Be careful you two." Clawhauser said under his breath as he took another bite of his donut and picked up the rest of his reports, taking them to his desk in the front.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Coroner's

Nick turned the key in the ignition of the squad car, and the engine came to life. They pulled away from the Police station in silence, and the atmosphere of the car was thick and heavy. Judy stared out at the skyscrapers of Sahara Square quietly pass by outside the windows. She was sitting in the car, but her mind wandered in the clouds. Nick looked at his friend staring down the buildings outside, and felt the cold atmosphere that enveloped the car.

"Hey Carrots," Nick began. "What're you up to? After your shift's over, I mean?" Judy continued to gaze out of the window, not realizing that Nick had spoken. "Uh, Carrots?" Nick snapped his fingers, eyes darting from the road to the side of her head. Judy jumped slightly, looking into Nick's eyes for what felt like an hour, her mouth open slightly. Nick's eyes widened, his face heating up. He looked back at the road quickly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening. Judy quickly looked at her feet, and she felt herself blushing.

"W-what were you saying?" Judy asked, looking back up at him.

"I, uh, just wanted to know if you're doing anything after you get off from work?" Nick said, his nerves almost getting the better of him. He'd thought he was better than that.

"I don't think I'm doing anything, why?" Judy's eyes widened a bit, out of curiosity. Nick swallowed his nerves, and took on a more casual tone.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to come over later? I just finished unpacking, and I found a bunch of old movies and cassette tapes in a box of my old stuff from back home. I'll order food or something, and I was wondering if you wanted to watch a few?" Nick avoided eye contact so she wouldn't see how embarrassed he was. Judy felt herself smiling.

"I'd love to! How about a pizza?" She said excitedly. Nick felt a wave of relief wash over him. "When should I come over?" The grin on her face grew, and she felt herself blush again.

"I don't know, what if I picked you up at 8?" Nick asked, steadily regaining his confidence.

"That sounds perfect!" Judy said happily. The car was close to its destination, and Judy could see the edge of the parking lot. Her smile faded as she looked out at the coroner's office, her face showing her unease. Nick noticed her expression, and he pulled into the parking lot. He put the car in park, and sat for a second, thinking. He turned to Judy.

"Hey, Carrots." He lifted her face up with his finger, and she looked at him with eyes he could get lost in. "It'll be okay. We'll be in and out. Sound good? Tell you what; you can pick the first movie. Deal? Judy smiled at him warmly, and stepped out of the car. He smiled back at her, and with a collective sigh, they turned to face the foreboding shape of the coroner's office.

Nick opened the doors into the lobby and walked inside, Judy following closely. The interior of the office was decorated sparsely, with very neutral grey paint on the walls. As Nick walked up to the receptionist and began asking about their appointment, among other things that Judy tuned out, and she looked around at the lobby, its emptiness and cold atmosphere unnerved her slightly."C'mon Carrots, someone should be out in a bit." Nick had begun to walk towards the seating area, and Judy walked beside him. They sat down next to each other, and his phone buzzed. Nick pulled it out of his pocket, looking at the screen for a second.

"Who was that?" Judy asked, needing a distraction from the otherwise chilling setting.

"It was Fangmeyer. He said that they were going to be running a little late, but he didn't say why." Nick opened his phone for a moment to check something, and put it back into his pocket. Nick yawned, stretching his arms wide.

"Have you been sleeping okay?" Judy asked, slightly concerned.

"Oh, yeah. I've just been up later because of work. I'm not used to being on such a tight schedule." Judy noticed how his eyelids would fall slowly, before he'd realize he was falling asleep, and she laughed. "You have such a cute laugh." Nick trailed off into a yawn. Judy felt herself blush. Nick jolted, realizing what he'd just said, and he stammered a bit. "You're not cute, I mean, you are cute, but I-" Judy laughed again, earning a cold look from the receptionist.

"I get it Nick. Thank you." Judy said, smiling at him. They locked eyes again for a moment, but they didn't look away because of embarrassment or nervousness, but because of a mammal in a lab coat that called had their names.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Judy rubbed her hands together, and her frozen breath floated behind her. The silent corridor they traveled down for what felt like an hour was seemingly endless, the conformed monotony broken up only by sets of double doors in front and behind, or the smaller office doors that occasionally dotted the sides. The temperature had taken a dive as soon as they'd left the waiting area, and Nick could tell that Judy wasn't as fond of the cold as he was.

"Should have brought a coat, eh Carrots?" Nick smiled.

"I d-didn't think I'd need one. It's supposed to be s-summer." Judy shivered, and Nick laughed as the coroner rolled his eyes. He quickly turned the corner; the first deviation from a strait line since they'd came through the first doors. Judy couldn't take much more of this, and she prayed that each door they went through would be the last.

"We just transferred the subject from the lab this morning." The coroner was flipping through the clipboard, and Nick casually looked over his shoulder at the papers attached. "We've gotten the autopsy, and we've been told to give you a quick look at it before we transfer it. So…" His voice trailed off, as he turned around and handed them surgical masks and rubber gloves. "What's left of the victim's various limbs are under the sheet on the left, belongings on the right in the bins. Have fun." He looked at them with an apathetic gaze, and Nick and Judy both took a mask and gloves, following the coroner through the steel doors.

Judy began to walk beside Nick, but she turned away at the last moment, needing a minute of mental preparation before examining the victim, so she focused on the victim's belongings and prints, along with other varying degrees of paperwork on a table nearby. Judy looked at a few pictures and records before turning to the bin of items found on the body. Judy took a deep breath, and looked towards Nick, and the white sheet he stood over. He looked back at her for a moment, and motioned for her.

"You might want to come see this." She mentally reassured herself, and walked to Nick's side, keeping her eyes half shut, anticipating the worst. She wasn't disappointed. The coroner spoke abruptly.

"Deep lacerations to the facial area and snout regions, left arm severed, left leg missing, and…" Judy noticed the coroner's reluctance to elaborate, but he continued. "Split chest cavity, with multiple pieces and whole organs missing." Nick looked at the chest area; but there was something off-putting about the erratic nature of the wound. He squinted for a second, looking closer.

"What were the cuts by the face caused by?" Nick asked, trying to get a complete picture.

"The multiple lacerations were most likely caused by a knife, or some kind of blade. That's what we think caused the stomach opening. The coroner began to look at his clipboard again. "That's what it says here, and that's about it." Nick scratched his chin and looked closer, his face a couple feet from the mangled corpse. His eyes scanned the tears in the flesh.

"Something's off here. These organs are too shredded for a knife." Judy looked at them for a bit, and decided the same. The coroner looked disturbed.

"What are you implying?" He said, curious.

"They look like…" Nick studied it for a moment, and arrived at his conclusion. "Bite marks." Judy nodded, silently. The coroner's eyebrows rose considerably.

"You're implying cannibalism? Am I hearing you correctly?" The coroner began to stifle a chuckle.

"Do you know where the missing parts of the victim are?" Nick said sharply, turning to him. The coroner's face returned to a scowl.

"They'll turn up. They're not eaten, if that's what you're implying." He flipped through the clipboard one last time, and turned back to them. "Have you seen all you need to?"

"Yeah. What do you think Carrots?" Nick asked, removing his gaze from the body.

"Definitely. Unless you still-"

"Nope." Nick began to walk out of the room, Judy running to catch up.

Nick shut the door to the squad car, as his phone buzzed. He casually opened the text, and his eyes widened.

"What's wrong? Is that Delgado?" Judy asked, looking at Nick's phone.

"Remember those missing pieces?" Nick said, shakily.

"Oh God…" Judy's mind raced, horrible images racing through her mind.

"They just found them in a bin near the crime scene, but there's something else. They found an envelope or something, they said they didn't open it." Nick started up the car, and they pulled out of the parking lot.

"Nick… What does all of this mean?"

"Well Carrots" Nick sighed. "We're in for one hell of a ride."

(Side Note: It's going to be awhile, probably around 2 weeks until the next few chapters, but they're coming! So, thanks for your patience!)


End file.
